The Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved a proposal to rename Kerala as “Keralam”. The name change, aimed at getting the official sanction in line with the state’s Malayalam pronunciation of the word in English, is constitutional and yes, symbolic too. The decision, which is aimed at achieving the symbolic objective, would move to the legislative stage as it is mandated by Article 3 of the Constitution.

This comes after the Kerala Legislative Assembly voted unanimously in 2024 to ask the Centre to change the name of the state in official records and in the First Schedule of the Constitution. The proposal has been approved by the Cabinet and is moving through the constitutional process now. 

But, why the new naamkaran?

In Malayalam this God’s own country is called Keralam. The name Kerala is derived from the words Kera (meaning coconut tree) and Alam (meaning land). The local inhabitants called their land Keralam and Kerala has the largest share of coconut production in India which is about 45%. 

According to the rulers, renaming Kerala to Keralam was done to meet the linguistic and cultural identity of the state.

The Kerala Assembly resolution stated:

“The name of our State is ‘Keralam’ in Malayalam Language. States were formed on the basis of language on the 1st day of November, 1956. The Kerala Piravi Day is also on the 1st day of November. Since the time of National Independence Struggle, there has been a strong demand for the formation of United Kerala for the people speaking Malayalam language. But in the First Schedule to the Constitution the name of our State is recorded as ‘Kerala.’ This Assembly unanimously appeal to the Central Government to take urgent steps as per Article 3 of the Constitution for modifying the name as ‘Keralam’.”

The Assembly voted to reinstate a report on national minorities in certain member states that had been withdrawn because of objections to its procedure and compatibility with the Assembly’s rules of procedure. It was later retabled, tho. 

What Happens Next? The Constitutional Process Explained

Article 1 of the Constitution says India, that is Bharat shall be a Union of States, while Article 3 enables the Parliament to reconstitute a State and/or to change its name.

With the Union Cabinet clearing the proposal, the President is expected to refer the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 to the Kerala Legislative Assembly inviting it to express its views on the issue, which would be tabled in the Parliament. 

The Bill will be discussed in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and a vote on it will be conducted. Upon being passed in both the Houses of Parliament with the majority votes and assented by the President, the name of the state would be altered to “Keralam” from “Kerala” in the Constitution as well as in all the official documents in English.

Narendra Modi: Reflecting The Will Of The People

Prime Minister Narendra Modi endorsed the decision and cast it as a cultural endorsement. He said:

“The decision of the Union Cabinet on alteration of the name of Kerala to Keralam reflects the will of the people of the state. It is in line with our efforts to strengthen the connect with our glorious culture.”

P. Sandosh Kumar: A Proper Reflection Of Culture And History

BJP Rajya Sabha member P. Sandosh Kumar on Saturday welcomed the decision of the state Assembly which was passed unanimously.

“The name ‘Keralam’ is very important. It is a proper reflection of our culture and history. So, our CM had moved this resolution. But it was unanimous.”

He justified his statement by saying that it was in line with the cross party consensus in the Kerala Assembly which had adopted the resolution.

Prakash Javadekar: An Act Of Decolonisation

Former Union Minister Prakash Javadekar has justified renaming Kerala as Keralam saying that it is a move to show India’s civilisational ethos.

“This is more than a name change; it’s an act of decolonisation that honors every Malayalam speaker on the planet.”

It’s nothing Mumbaikars have not already seen before with the renaming of Mumbai from Bombay. Similar changes are Chennai from Madras, Kolkata from Calcutta, Bengaluru from Bangalore and Odisha from Orissa.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: Tradition And Economic Vision

Former Minister of State for IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar too welcomed the move. He said:

“Calling our state Keralam will be appropriate because we are going to be a state that is going to restore and protect our traditions and culture and also build a forward-looking state economy.”

He believed that the preservation of culture and antiquities would also promote economic growth. He was among those who believed that the state should be renamed, as part of the wider plan for the progress of the country.

V Muraleedharan: Recognising Malayalam’s Significance

Former BJP Kerala state president V Muraleedharan said the move was linguistically correct. He said:

“It indicates the significance of the Malayalam language… The government under the PM Narendra Modi has accepted the long-standing demand of the people of Kerala.”

He said the demand for a name echoing its linguistic upbringing was very old and definitely not a recent demand.He also said that the demand was made in the context of linguistic reorganisation of states in 1956.

The timing is being questioned? 

The Cabinet cleared the proposal for the election of 140 members of the Kerala legislative assembly that is due before May. The government has been severely criticized for its decision to clear the Bill at this crucial time. 

The Cabinet took the decision following a democratically adopted resolution by the Kerala Assembly requesting the name switch. 

“It has always been ‘Keralam’ Shashi Tharoor Raises Questions

Not every figure is pleased tho. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is not too happy or completely eclectic (shashi tharoor vocab) with the recent development. He does not think the move would achieve anything? 

“It has already been ‘Keralam’ in Malayalam. So now, a Malayalam word is coming in English. I don’t know what difference it makes. The government has not given us an AIIMS or any new institutions. They have given us no projects in the Union Budget. But when it comes to a name change, they are willing to authorise it.”

Shashi Tharoor has also posted a small comment on X, describing it as a “small linguistic question” and said:

“All to the good, no doubt, but a small linguistic question for the Anglophones among us: what happens now to the terms ‘Keralite’ and ‘Keralan’ for the denizens of the new ‘Keralam’? ‘Keralamite’ sounds like a microbe and ‘Keralamian’ like a rare earth mineral… @CMOKerala might want to launch a competition for new terms resulting from this electoral zeal.”

Shashi Tharoor’s X post spread speculations and raised questions by the minute. 

The tweet spread like wild fire, and stirred up a whole hoopla in the social media over the terms that are used to describe people from Kerala, Keralite or Keralan?